Sacha Baron Cohen - IMDb IMDb Official Photos » British actor and comedian Sacha Baron Cohen was born in Hammersmith, London. He is the son of Daniella (Weiser), a movement instructor, and Gerald Baron Cohen, a clothing store owner. His father, born in England and raised in Wales, was of Eastern European Jewish descent, while his mother was born in Israel, to German Jewish parents. He was ... See full bio » Born: Famous Directors: From Sundance to Prominence From Christopher Nolan to Quentin Tarantino and every Coen brother in between, many of today's most popular directors got their start at the Sundance Film Festival . Here's a list of some of the biggest names to go from Sundance to Hollywood prominence. a list of 47 people created 24 May 2011 a list of 32 people created 19 Feb 2013 a list of 46 people created 30 Nov 2013 a list of 29 people created 15 Jan 2016 a list of 40 people created 2 months ago Do you have a demo reel?

Add it to your IMDbPage How much of Sacha Baron Cohen's work have you seen? User Polls Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 24 wins & 36 nominations. See more awards » Known For 2013 Eastbound & Down (TV Series) Ronnie Thelman 2005 Curb Your Enthusiasm (TV Series) Larry's Guide #2 1998 Comedy Nation (TV Series) Various 2012 The Dictator (written by) 2009 Brüno (character) / (screenplay) / (story) Da Ali G Show (TV Series) (created by - 12 episodes, 2003 - 2004) (writer - 12 episodes, 2003 - 2004) - Realness (2004) ...

(creator) / (writer) 1998 The 11 O'Clock Show (TV Series) (writer) 1998 Comedy Nation (TV Series) (writer - 1 episode) 2015 Highston (TV Series) (executive producer - 1 episode) - Pilot (2015) ... (executive producer) 2003-2004 Da Ali G Show (TV Series) (executive producer - 7 episodes) - Respek (2004) ...

(executive producer) 2002 Ali G Indahouse (executive producer) Hide 2013 The 85th Annual Academy Awards (TV Special) (performer: "One Day More") 2012 Les Misérables (performer: "Beggars At The Feast", "Master of the House", "The Robbery/Javert's Intervention", "Attack on the Rue Plumet", "One Day More!", "The Thénardier Waltz Of Treachery", "The Wedding") 2012 Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted (performer: "Afro Circus / I Like to Move It") 2012 The Dictator (performer: "The Next Episode" - as Admiral General Aladeen) / (writer: "Money's on the Dresser") 2009 Brüno (performer: "Dove Of Peace (Middle East Version)", "Schlaf Kinder Schlaf", "Dove of Peace") / (writer: "Dove Of Peace (Middle East Version)", "Dove of Peace") Sacha Cohen hides behind characters | Toronto Star Entertainment Sacha Cohen hides behind characters When he's not in character

, the British comedian behind the outrageously wild Ali G., Borat and Bruno, tries to stay out of the spotlight.

Who is Sacha Baron Cohen? Clockwise from top, actor Sacha Baron Cohen in costume as Brüno the camp fashion reporter; presenting the award for Best Male Performance at the 2009 MTV Movie Awards; as Borat the Kazakh TV journalist; and as himself. (REUTERS / ASSOCIATED PRESS) By Cathal Kelly Sports Columnist Wed., June 3, 2009 You can spend a lot of time staring at a man's bare bum, but don't think it means that you know his soul. That's sort of Sacha Baron Cohen's point. There are few things the man behind Ali G., Borat and now alarmingly camp Austrian fashion reporter Brüno likes better than a nice, nude tussle. At least when he's in character as a buffoonish interviewer who engages in sincere, increasingly ridiculous conversation with real-life people, as we'll find out again when the Brüno movie is released this summer. In the promotional build-up to that July 10 launch, Baron Cohen upped the cultural ante on Sunday with a prime-time televised demonstration of cheek-to-cheek closeness with Eminem at the MTV Movie Awards in Los Angeles.

Say what you like, the 37-year-old British comedian does not do half-measures. Baron Cohen rarely gives interviews. When he does, he generally insists on remaining in character. We do know that Baron Cohen was born in London into an upper-middle class family of Orthodox Jews. His mother taught dance. His father owned a clothing store. He has two brothers. Article Continued Below He attended private schools. He worked on a kibbutz. He studied history at Cambridge. He was, by all accounts, smart and amiable and utterly unremarkable. It seems clear from his very few unguarded comments that he remains so. He has a 19-month-old daughter, Olive, with Australian actress Isla Fisher. After graduation, Baron Cohen gave himself five years to make it in comedy. After that, he promised, he would get a real job. He started out in the U.K. equivalent of community television. His first successful character, in 1998, was Ali G., a hip-hop loudmouth from suburban London who insists, despite evidence to the contrary, that he is black. At first, Ali G. existed in a vacuum.

But Baron Cohen found that the bit worked much better when he interacted with real people. In one of his first skits, he burst into a local pub and began break-dancing. The police forcibly ejected him. Two months short of his five-year deadline, he was hired to host a satirical late-night chat show, Da Ali G. Show, and wild success followed. He caught Canada's attention four years ago in an ad spot for the National Basketball Association. In it, Ali G. tells basketballer and Victoria native Steve Nash: "No disrespect, but you is Canadian so you don't even speak English, so shut up." "No, we speak English in Canada," Nash says. "Can't understand what you're sayin'," Cohen gapes. "You're speakin' in Canada." Once Ali G. took off, Baron Cohen unleashed Borat. Unlucky Kazakhstan became the imbecilic journalist's home only because Cohen thought it would be difficult for his targets to check up on him there prior to their "interviews." One former TV boss credited Baron Cohen's "psychotic ability" to inhabit his characters, pushing things well beyond the inhibitions of common sense.

The result has always been cringe inducing and hypnotically watchable. He was once asked if he could do the things he does as Sacha Baron Cohen, rather than one of his alter-egos. "I think I'd find it hard to," Baron Cohen told Rolling Stone magazine. "I think you can hide behind your characters and do things that you yourself find difficult." His major gambit is the sit-down interview. Inevitably, it goes terribly awry. Fake shell companies generally set up these interviews. Up until the last moment, the subject believes a buttoned-down producer will interview him. Then Baron Cohen springs into the interviewer's chair. He warms up his mark by seeming idiotic and harmless. After 15 minutes of banal back-and-forth, he begins asking the ridiculous questions that will make it onto film. Generally, the interviewee is so taken by surprise, he/she cooperates for just long enough to get the laughs. Of course, this business is one of diminishing returns. The more successful his characters become, the smaller Baron Cohen's pool of unsuspecting targets becomes. Ali G. and Borat have already been pushed into retirement.

All Baron Cohen has left is Brüno, an Austrian fashion journalist just as flaky as Borat, and just as howlingly insensitive to the norms of good taste. Presumably, this last well of ignorant goodwill will also run dry once Brüno comes out. Baron Cohen continues to find employment in other people's movies, but nothing suits him quite like his own creations. He claims to have been working on new identities, but has yet to produce one. "I'm a private person, and to reconcile that with being famous is a hard thing," Baron Cohen has said. The question is: Can he reconcile himself to a life without the odd bare-bum romp now and then? Sacha Baron Cohen biography | birthday, trivia | British Actor | Who2 Sacha Baron Cohen Biography Comedian Comedian Sacha Baron Cohen made his fame playing the goofy television interviewer Ali G, a dimwitted hip-hop poseur with a cockney accent. Ali G appeared on The 11 O’Clock Show (1998) and Da Ali G Show (2000-03), where he duped prominent Britons and Americans into participating in TV interviews.

Ali G’s extreme ignorance and the earnest exasperation of the unsuspecting interviewees was the source of much hilarity, and Da Ali G Show became a hit, first in the U.K. and then in the United States. Cohen also expanded his phony-character repertoire to include Borat Sagdiyev, a TV reporter from Kazakhstan, and a flamboyant Austrian fashionista named Bruno. As Ali G he has starred in the feature film Ali G Indahouse (2002), and as Borat he starred in the movie Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006). Cohen, who is Jewish, has been criticized for the anti-Semitism and misogyny that is part of the Borat schtick, but his fans argue that he uses politically charged language as a way to reveal the bigotry of others, especially Americans.

Cohen has also done voice work for the movie Madagascar (2005, with Ben Stiller ), and he appeared in the Will Ferrell comedy Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006), Tim Burton ‘s 2007 movie Sweeney Todd (starring Johnny Depp ), and the 2011 Martin Scorsese fantasy Hugo. In 2012 he released another spoofy comedy, The Dictator, playing a bearded despot from North Africa who runs into trouble in New York City. Extra credit Cohen became engaged to Australian actress Isla Fisher in 2004; they married in March of 2010. They have three children: daughters Olive (born 2007) and Elula (born 2010) and son Montgomery (born 2015). Sacha Baron Cohen: Who Is ‘Borat’? | Access Hollywood Sacha Baron Cohen: Who Is ‘Borat’?

October 31, 2006 11:41 AM PST NEW YORK (October 31, 2006) — In promoting his new film, Sacha Baron Cohen has not wavered in presenting himself as the backward Kazakh journalist Borat Sagdiyev — be it in interviews, at movie premieres or on his thorough MySpace.com page. Borat has virtually stepped off the movie screen like Tom Baxter in Woody Allen’s “The Purple Rose of Cairo.” But Baron Cohen’s immersion in Borat has numerous predecessors. Character-based humor has long been a staple of comedians, some of whom have similarly pushed the boundaries of reality and fiction. It’s an approach that goes back to Andy Kaufman, Peter Sellers and beyond: Perhaps the tradition’s forefather is Jack Benny, the legendary comedian whose stage character was cheap, vain and easily exasperated. More recent examples of comedic faux personas include Paul Reuben’s Pee Wee Herman, the Stephen Colbert of “The Colbert Report” and Martin Short’s Jiminy Glick. On Nov.

22, Jack Black and partner Kyle Gass will again transform into the pseudo rock group Tenacious D for the film “Tenacious D in `The Pick of Destiny”’ — itself owing to the classic 1984 mockumentary “This is Spinal Tap.” Stephen Rosenfield, director of the American Comedy Institute, says it’s fitting that Baron Cohen would use the media as an extension of his character in promoting “Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan,” in which Borat (a TV reporter) interviews real people who aren’t in on the gag. “It’s a natural other venue for a comedian to go into,” Rosenfield says. He notes, too, that Borat’s existence has reached an absurd level: “I mean, countries are having to do press conferences on him.” (Kazakhstan’s deputy foreign minister, Rakhat Aliyev, recently extended an invitation to Borat to find out what the country is really like.) Baron Cohen’s character was first developed for “Da Ali G Show” (carried in the U.S. on HBO) in which Borat was one of three characters along with mock-rapper Ali G and gay Austrian fashion reporter Bruno.

The 35-year-old actor is planning to follow “Borat” with “Bruno.” Though Baron Cohen has appeared in Will Ferrell’s “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby” and provided a voice for the animated “Madagascar,” he has almost never appeared in public out of character. On the commentary track to the DVDs for the first season of “Da Ali G Show” Baron Cohen offered insight into the creation of Borat, who he said was influenced by someone he met in Southern Russia. “I can’t remember his name — he was a doctor,” Baron Cohen said. “The moment I met him, I was totally crying.

He was an hysterically funny guy, albeit totally unintentionally.” That kind of real-life inspiration is familiar to Short, whose Jiminy Glick, an overweight Hollywood reporter, spawned the TV show “Primetime Glick” and the film “Jiminy Glick in Lalawood.” Glick also makes a nightly cameo in Short’s one-man Broadway musical “Fame Becomes Me.” “I’d meet funny people in life and be shocked at how bizarre they were, whether it was their hair or their behavior or their attitude — and it made me laugh harder than hearing someone talking about dating,” says Short, whose other characters have included Ed Grimley, Irving Cohen and Nathan Thurm. Just as the name of one of Borat’s sons is Hooeylewis, the fleshed-out biography of Glick includes four sons, including Matthew and Modine. Glick has also occasionally popped up among the press at real red-carpet arrivals, interviewing celebrities who became part of the act. “The original idea of (Glick) was I wanted to be unrecognizable,” says Short.

“There are certain things that I can say as that character that I could never say as myself.” Short says one of his biggest influences was Sellers, who brilliantly inhabited three characters in Stanley Kubrick’s “Dr. Strangelove” (1964). Sellers also played six characters in 1974’s “Soft Beds, Hard Battles.” Though Baron Cohen’s methods diverge greatly from Sellers, he’s often been compared to the actor. It’s widely known that Colbert’s overinflated, conservative TV host was modeled in part after Fox News Channel’s Bill O’Reilly. Since Colbert’s character shares his own name (as Benny’s persona did), the comedian has joked that he has considered pronouncing the “T” in his name to differentiate himself from his creation. Colbert (the character) reached his apotheosis earlier this year when he hosted the White House Correspondents Association dinner with President Bush in attendance. “It was surreal to be there,” Colbert says. “It was odd because my character pretends to belong there (among politicians and pundits) and to actually be there and to be treated like you belong was really strange. “From the moment I got there, I was in character because he was so completely comfortable there.

It was like being in Oz.” The balance of self and role was murkier with Kaufman. The convention-breaking comedian took his Foreign Man to “Taxi” in the late ‘70s, and later frequently performed as abusive lounge singer Tony Clifton. The character was even secretly passed on to others, though Kaufman maintained he was a real person. “With Andy Kaufman, it was debatably schizophrenic,” says Rosenfield. “It was so thoroughly worked-out that one almost had the feeling that it was a different personality within a personality. You don’t know to what degree he was in control of what he was doing.” Baron Cohen has thus far appeared in total command of both his character and his private life — which he’s successfully kept a mostly blank slate. It’s known, though, that the British comedian is an observant Jew who attended the University of Cambridge, where he wrote his thesis on Jewish involvement in the American civil rights movement, and he and his fiancee, actress Isla Fisher from “Wedding Crashers,” are planning a traditional Jewish wedding.

20th Century Fox, which is distributing “Borat,” has accommodated Baron Cohen’s subsuming himself into his character, while others involved (director Larry Charles, producer Jay Roach, actress Pamela Anderson) largely have remained mum on the film, most likely to play along. Though “Borat” has received a great deal of publicity, Fox confessed last week that market research indicated the film wasn’t catching on. The studio decided to scale down this week’s opening to about 800 theaters, planning to expand to 2,200 theaters next weekend. Still, Borat appears to be relishing his moment in the sun, angering people in Kazakhstan while he searches for — as his MySpace profile advertises — “Western girlies for chitchat and sexytime.” Copyright © What’s real in “Borat”? - Salon.com Friday, Nov 10, 2006 1:00 PM UTC What’s real in “Borat”? Everything you wanted to know about the Kazakh road trip -- what was staged, who was an actor, and who was just hapless comedy roadkill.

Topics: Entertainment News The devilish pranks of “Borat” have made him the powder-blue polyester breakout hit of the season. But how many of Sacha Baron Cohen’s gags are real, and which ones are staged? Which of Borat’s victims were legitimately goofed, and which ones just played along for giggles? With few exceptions, the real folks featured in “Borat,” the movie, have been happy to talk about their experience, and outing them has turned into a mini-media craze, with tons of news outlets trying to sniff out the stories behind the making of the film. To save you time and satisfy your curiosity, we tracked down some of Borat’s victims on our own and also compiled a guide revealing which figures were in on the joke (Pamela — say it ain’t so!) and which weren’t. But even after our sleuthing, some mysteries remain — like where the heck did that naked wrestling match take place? No one seems to know. If you have a clue — or any great additional information — please send it to us. This is a work in progress, so be sure to check back in. We think you’ll find it very niiice.

The Scene: Borat goes to the rodeo Where: Salem Civic Center, Salem, Va. Borat arrives at the rodeo, with plans to sing the national anthem. The rodeo’s producer, Bobby Rowe, helpfully advises Borat to shave his mustache, so as not to be mistaken for a Muslim. When Borat tries to kiss him on the cheek, Rowe tells him never to do that, that people might get the wrong impression that he’s gay. After Borat declares, “We hang homosexuals in my country!” Rowe smirkingly responds: “That’s what we’re trying to do here.” Before launching into the anthem, Borat shrieks, “We support your war of terror” — to thunderous applause. The crowd’s enthusiasm tapers off as Borat voices his wish that “George W. Bush will drink the blood of every man, woman and child in Iraq” and turns into all-out booing once Borat begins to sing the Kazakh national anthem — during which point a horse, apparently spooked by the crowd, freaks out and falls to the ground with his flag-waving rider. What happened: The event caused quite a stir.

John Saunders, the Salem Civic Center’s assistant director, told the Roanoke Times that if Borat and crew hadn’t high-tailed it out of the arena, “There would have been a riot. They would have been killed.” Rowe told Salon that he’d agreed to let Borat sing, believing the story that Borat was a Kazakh journalist traveling across the country. Rowe says he requested a sample track, but was sent a blank CD. And what about those anti-gay comments? Rowe, who says he hasn’t seen the film, didn’t disavow them, but instead offered a curious rationale: “As long as [homosexuals] don’t mess with me and get me involved, if that’s their choice, just have at it. Just don’t come in my household and try to demand, as they’re doing now, all sorts of things. All this marriage and this mess. If you want to go live together, go live together, but don’t drag everyone else into it. It’s, like, before you could just pump your gas, but the thieves ruined it for everyone. Now everyone has to go pay for their gas first.

Homosexuals, they want their rights for marriage and all this stuff, and they want respectability. If you want to live that life, live that life, but don’t involve the whole rest of the country.” Is Rowe concerned about how he comes off in the film? “I’m not really worried about it,” he says. “It can’t be so bad that I can’t survive. No one’s coming and trying to eat me.” The Scene: Borat almost stays at a bed-and-breakfast Where: Though the film suggests the bed-and-breakfast is somewhere between Atlanta and Dallas, it’s actually in Newton, Mass. Borat arrives at a bed-and-breakfast only to realize that, to his horror, the kindly owners are … Jewish. Scared into playing nice, Borat hesitantly takes a bite out of a pastrami and rye sandwich they bring to his bedroom — then spits it out the minute they turn away. Later that night, convinced that the shape-shifting couple has transformed into a menacing pair of insects, he throws money at them and runs screaming, with his producer Azamat, into the night.

What happened: Mariam and Joseph Behar, the proprietors of the kosher bed-and-breakfast, tell Salon that they rented out three rooms to what they thought was a Kazakh documentarian and his film crew. The location had been scouted and photographed, with the Behars’ knowledge, prior to the taping. Speaking on the telephone, Joseph, with Mariam chatting in the background, says they saw the film and thought it “was not anti-Semitic at all. It was outstanding. I think [Sacha Baron Cohen] is a genius.” Though Borat never broke character, and no one in the production let the Behars in on the joke, Joseph found Borat to be “very lovely and very polite, very attractive.” Joseph says that he first started to have doubts about Borat’s authenticity when Borat told him he was going to be married in Malibu. “I know what kind of people live in Malibu,” Joseph said, “and I didn’t think someone in Malibu would marry this kind of man.” Mariam also overheard Borat using Hebrew words (Borat’s Kazakh is a mix of gibberish Hebrew and various Eastern European languages).

The producers did ask the Behars to bring food to Borat’s room — something not usually done for guests — though they did not say what kind of food to bring. The Scene: Borat has an etiquette lesson Where: Birmingham, Ala. Borat visits etiquette instructor Kathie Martin for advice on appropriate dinner party behavior. Most memorably, Borat regales Martin with Polaroids of his very, very naked, teenage son, which Martin, with preternatural poise, suggests he not show to his fellow dinner party attendees. What happened: Martin was told by producers that a Kazakh documentarian would like to have a lesson before beginning his travels, so as not to embarrass himself. Martin saw the film on Saturday and told us she found that “certain parts were funny, certain parts were not.” She told Newsweek, “I would’ve liked my 15 minutes of fame in this life to have been for something more worthwhile than an R-rated movie.” Her first meeting with Borat was canceled after the crew came to Martin’s house and encountered technical difficulties — but not before Martin had prepared a five-course meal for her guest.

As for the naked pictures, Martin, polite as always, remarked, “It helped that I was not wearing my glasses.” The Scene: Borat eats with a Southern dining society Where: The dinner took place at the Magnolia Springs Manor in Helena, Ala. The Southern plantation home was built in 1875 and currently functions as an event hall. Among many transgressions that night, Borat insults the wife of Mountain Brook Presbyterian Church pastor Cary Speaker; after remarking on how popular two of the women would be in Kazakhstan, Borat gestures at Speaker’s wife and says, “not so much.” Oh, he also brings a bag of his own excrement to the table after using the bathroom, mistakes a retired fellow diner for being retarded, and invites a “prostitute” over for company. What happened: The Birmingham News reports that Borat’s dining companions weren’t that upset with how they appeared in the film. “All things considered, we got out of this pretty clean,” said the retired Mike Jared. Speaker, who abruptly left the party after the alleged prostitute arrived, says his attitude is “Hey, he fooled us; it’s funny. Watching this, I’m sure it’s funny [to some people].

It was just not funny that night.” He adds that his two college-age sons found his appearance “hysterical.” [Updated Nov. 20, 2006:]Though Cindy Streit, the Birmingham etiquette coach who arranged the dinner and instructed Borat on how to correctly flush his feces, told The News I don’t think he made a fool of us,” she has nonetheless filed a complaint with the California Attorney General, requesting an investigation into possible violations of the California Unfair Trade Practices Act according to the Associated Press. Streit contends that the production company that set-up her meetings with Borat put into writing that the session would be filmed as part of a documentary for Belarus Television and for those purposes only. 20th Century Fox has dismissed her claims, saying that Streit signed a release and was compensated, not once, but twice  the second time a number of weeks after her initial meeting with Borat. Streit has not ruled out a lawsuit.

The Scene: Borat goes for humor lessons Where: Although the film makes it appear as if Borat’s humor lessons took place in New York, he visited with humor coach Pat Haggerty, who lives and works in Washington, D.C. Haggerty instructs Borat to not make jokes about the “retard” brother Borat keeps in a cage, and that perhaps it’s not the best idea to tell people about having sex with his mother-in-law. Borat also proves himself to be a quick study when it comes to the subtle timing of the “not” joke — not! What he said: Haggerty told the BBC News that about halfway through their session he realized “this guy can’t be real.” Aware that he was being made to play the straight man, Haggerty continued with the lesson because “they paid me my money and they deserve an hour of my time.” According to the same story, the public speaking coach is hoping his appearance in the film will give his career a boost.

“The only downside is if I appear to be a fool.” The Scene: Borat talks to the Veteran Feminists of America Where: New York Borat sits down with three members of the Veteran Feminists of America, informs them that women have smaller brains than men do, and inquires about “Baywatch.” He also cajoles one to “listen, pussycat, smile a bit,” without much luck. (To view some of the scene, go here. ) What happened: Linda Stein, Grace Welch and Carole De Saram were told by producers that they would be appearing in a documentary to help women in Third World countries. Stein says she has mixed feelings about the incident. She finagled her way into an advance screening of the film and found some parts of the film funny, but thinks “the joke appeals more to men than women.” Welch, a yoga instructor, found the whole incident funny. “What he does, he does very well, so I don’t feel anger,” she told the British Observer.

“I was inclined very much to laugh at the event.” As a result of the encounter she did go see “Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby,” thinking it was “Borat.” “I had to soldier on to watch that,” she said. “I don’t usually go to those kinds of pictures.” Cohen’s Borat act was thoroughly convincing. Though Stein threw him out of the interview twice, she readily admits that “at no point during the whole event, as angry as I may have gotten, did it ever occur to me this was a comedian acting.” The producer was able to sweet-talk the women into speaking with Borat again after the first heave-ho (the second time around, Borat asked the women to take off their tops). “Please,” Stein says the producer begged, “he’s from a third-world country, help him. He doesn’t know any better.” The producer then admonished Borat in a stage whisper, “You can’t talk to American women this way.” When Stein told Borat that women in America can do anything men can, be president, secretary of state (“Oh, like that chocolate lady?” Borat replied) or even a reporter, Borat argued, “No.

I can lift a chair!” At which point he stood up and lifted a chair. Not to be outdone, Stein lifted a chair as well. “I can lift two chairs,” Borat countered, lifting two chairs. Stein did the same. And she now takes exception to the omission of this scene from the film. “He didn’t choose the segments that really make the point that women are equal and strong. He didn’t make the point with sexism that perhaps he did with anti-Semitism and homophobia.” The Scene: Borat learns to drive Where: Baltimore County, Md. After deciding that he must travel cross-country to meet Pamela Anderson, Borat decides to take driving lessons. Patiently teaching the easily distracted Kazakh is Michael Psenicksa, a driving instructor with 32 years of experience and the owner of his own driving school. During the harrowing car ride, Psenicksa tells Borat that in America, women must give consent for “sexy time.” “That’s good, huh?” says the instructor. “That’s not good for me,” Borat replies.

What happened: In an interview with the Baltimore Sun, Psenicksa said his encounter with Borat began in May 2005, when he received a phone call from someone saying his production company was filming a documentary about foreigners learning how to drive. He realized he’d been the victim of a gag after he told his son-in-law about the experience, who said it sounded like a gag from “Da Ali G Show.” When Psenicksa saw the show, he recognized his student. While he thought the movie was funny, Psenicksa says he was upset that other drivers were put at risk during the prank. “I’m not happy about that to this day.” The Scene: Borat buys a car The Scene: Gaithersburg, Md. Borat arrives at a dealership looking to buy a vehicle for somewhere in the range of $600 to $650. Borat asks the salesman, the aptly named Jim Sell, for a “pussy magnet,” at which point he’s shown a Hummer. After Borat learns that no such actual magnet exists, and that the Hummer is out of his price range, we appear to see Sell arrange for Borat to buy a used ice cream truck.

What happened: “I was approached by a man named Todd Lewis, who said he was a producer for a documentary,” says Sell. “They wanted to film him negotiating with me over the price of a vehicle.” When Borat arrived, “they kept him away from most people in the dealership. I had no idea who he was. I just thought he didn’t know anything about this country.” Sell knew something fishy was going on when Borat “gave me a pin and said it was a gift from his country. On one side was a flag, on the other side was a KKK sign.” “Luckily, I handled myself OK,” says Sell. “I just feel bad I wasted three hours of my time for 150 bucks. And I had nothing to do with selling him an ice cream truck.” The Scene: Borat appears on a small Southern ABC affiliate Where: Jackson, Miss. Borat wreaks havoc at Jackson’s WAPT, standing up every time he spoke, forcing the camera crew to scramble to avoid waist-level shots; offering up his sister to the silver-haired newscaster conducting the interview; interrupting the weatherman during a report by wandering on to the set.

What happened: A story in the Jackson Clarion-Ledger quotes station general manager Stuart Kellogg as saying, “We were gotten. Our folks researched the production company, which has its own Web site and sounds legitimate. They did their homework, but not well enough. It seemed plausible that he was who he said he was,” Kellogg said. “Who knows what an accent from Kazakhstan sounds like?” The story also reports that Borat’s visit led the station to upgrading its policy on researching guests and on building security. Another story reports that Dharma Arthur, the woman responsible for booking Borat on the show, says she lost her livelihood because of the incident. “I spiraled into depression, and before I could recover, I was released from my contract early. It took me three months to find another job, and now I’m thousands of dollars in debt and struggling to keep my house out of foreclosure. The upsetting thing is that a man who leaves so much harm in his path is lauded as a comic genius.” The Scene: Borat meets a prostitute Where: Helena, Ala.

Borat invites Luenell, a prostitute whose number he found in the back of a newspaper, to the Magnolia Mansion Dining Society, whose members promptly ask them to leave. Borat and Luenell go on to enjoy a night of mechanical bull riding at a local bar. Later, after Borat concludes that things aren’t going to work out with Pamela Anderson, he realizes Luenell is the woman for him, marries her, and takes her back to Kazakhstan, where she feeds his whole town with her breast milk. What happened: Sadly, Luenell Campbell is not a Borat-style “Pretty Woman” but a 37-year-old comedian and actress who has appeared in “So I Married an Axe Murderer” and “The Rock,” and is currently on a comedy tour. She’s coy about her participation in the film, telling MTV, “I can’t tell you about any of the inner workings. I’m sworn to secrecy … Borat and I go back a long way. We knew each other in Kazakhstan.” The Scene: Borat wrecks an antique store Where: Adolph Rose Antiques in Vicksburg, Miss.

After being convinced that the shop owners are not trying to trick him by selling “old things,” Borat destroys a good chunk of the store’s merchandise via a series of pratfalls. Borat’s offer to help pay for the broken antiques with a bag of pubic hair is, unsurprisingly, turned down. What happened: Store owner Larry Walker tells us that he was called out of the blue by a producer asking permission to come to his store, in order to film “a Belarussian documentary about life in the South.” “I had a funny feeling at first,” Walker continues. “But some woman called and seemed nice and convincing, and she sent me stuff on some official-looking letterhead. Then when Borat came, all hell broke loose.” Walker, who found that he’d been duped only after a friend saw Borat on the “Today” show, estimates that $500 worth of merchandise was broken during the filming, which lasted about three hours. Still, he says he harbors no ill-will about being featured in the film (the damaged antiques were all paid for, even though the film implies otherwise). “It’s a very funny movie. You have to laugh at it now.

But at the time, we were just glad to get rid of him.” The Scene: Borat takes a road trip with three frat boys Where: The film implies that it takes place on a stretch in the Southwest. In fact, it was in South Carolina. Borat gets picked up on the side of the road by three members of the Chi Psi fraternity. David, Justin and Anthony fulfill just about every frat-boy stereotype possible, saying they wished they had slaves, explaining that minorities have all the power, disabusing Borat of the notion that Pamela Anderson is a virgin, and devolving into general drunken boorishness. What happened: The University of South Carolina chapter of Chi Psi has been expectedly tight-lipped about the incident, which doesn’t portray the boys in a particularly positive light. Chapter president Todd Bailey told a Web site that he’s not eager to see the film: “Personally, I have no desire to see it, but I have to be aware of what’s in the movie.” David Corcoran, the most outspoken of the three, spoke with FHM about the experience. “This guy said they were filming a Kazakh reporter who wanted to hang out with frat guys,” Corcoran said.

“They met 10 of us and I guess chose the three who wouldn’t recognize Borat.” The producers paid for the three men to drink at a bar, and then had them get in the RV and “pick Borat up … as if he was hitchhiking.” Once in the RV, he says, Borat showed them naked pictures of his sister and confessed to beating women. Two of the guys — identified in court filings only as John Doe 1 and John Doe 2 — are now suing 20th Century Fox and One America Productions, the production company behind the film. The suit claims all three were told at the time that the film wouldn’t show in the U.S. and their identities would be kept secret. They’re seeking unspecified damages for “humiliation, mental anguish, and emotional and physical distress, loss of reputation, goodwill and standing in the community.” The Scene: Borat tries to kidnap Pamela Anderson Where: Los Angeles A lovelorn Borat finally meets the object of his desire at a Virgin Megastore and attempts to kidnap her by throwing a bag over her head.

After she escapes, he then chases the barefoot Anderson into the parking lot, where he is thrown to the ground by two security guards. What happened: Anderson tells MTV that she has been sworn to secrecy about her involvement with the project, but says, “I love Sacha. He’s such a nice guy … He’s the new Monty Python.” Despite her silence, it seems more than likely that Anderson was in on the joke. In August 2005, when the film was still shooting, there were suspicious reports of a Malibu beach commitment ceremony between Anderson’s two dogs that was interrupted by Borat, who “emerged from the surf astride an inflatable turtle.” Borat, the story claimed, “sprinted toward Anderson and felled her with a perfectly executed rugby tackle … [she] struggled to her feet and brushed sand off of her long white gown as her loyal bodyguards seized the interloper, dragged him back to the shore, and dunked him in the hungry waves.” That sounds like an alternative ending that might have just been too implausible to make the final cut. But we’re sure it’ll wind up in the DVD. [Added Nov.

14, 2006] The Scene: Borat at home in Kuczek, Kazakhstan Where: Actually in Glod, Romania The film begins with Borat giving a tour of the run-down, poverty-stricken village of Kuzcek, where people share living quarters with livestock and the car he leaves for America in is powered not with gas, but a team of horses. Borat also introduces us to locals, like the village “mechanic and abortionist” and his sister Natalya — the fourth-best prostitute in Kazakhstan. We’re also shown a brief clip of the annual “Running of the Jews,” where people dressed in fanged and green-skinned “Jew” costumes run the streets of Buzcek, as the villagers attack them. Borat returns to Kuzcek at the end of the film, bringing with him his new American bride Luenell. What Happened: According to this story in the U.K.’s Daily Mail, the Kuzcek scenes were actually shot in Glod — a village of 1,000 people at the foot of Romania’s Carpathain Mountains. The story explains how the villagers were told that the filming was for a documentary about their hardship.

Upset at their portrayal as a bunch of backwoods prostitutes and rapists, the residents of the village are planning to sue the filmmakers. After being shown the film’s trailer by the Mail’s reporter, Spirea Ciorobea, represented in the film as the “village mechanic and abortionist,” had the following to say: “What I saw looks disgusting. Even if we are uneducated and poor, it is not fair that someone does this to us.” The disabled Nicu Tudorache, who unwittingly appears in the film with a sex toy attached to the end of his amputated arm, expressed similar concerns. “This is disgusting,” he said. “They conned us into doing all these things and never told us anything about what was going on. They made us look like primitives, like uncivilised savages.” Conditions in Glod were evidently enough to disturb Cohen — whom villagers describe as “nice and friendly, if a bit weird and ugly” — as the comedian was reportedly accompanied by bodyguards while on location and stayed in a hotel in Sinaia, a nearby ski resort, rather than the “run-down” motel the rest of the crew called home. [Added Nov.

20, 2006] Glod is now suing the makers of Borat for $30 million dollars in damages and seeking to stop screenings of the film if its not re-cut to present the town in a more positive way. According to the Los Angeles Times , the suit filed in New York (two others will be filed in Florida and Germany), seeks $5 million to be used to improve schools and other infrastructure in the impoverished village, an additional $25 million in humanitarian aid and an unspecified amount for fair compensation for the villagers, who were paid roughly $4 a day for participating in the film, which has made $90.5 million in domestic box office receipts. The production contends that the actors were paid more than $4 — a sum double the amount suggested by the Romanian Film Office — and that they gave $10,000 to the village after their stay to purchase computers for the local school. David Marchese is associate music editor at Salon.

'Borat' star to play Freddie Mercury in Queen biopic | News | Expatica the Netherlands 'Borat' star to play Freddie Mercury in Queen biopic 18th September 2010, 0 comments British comedian Sacha Baron Cohen, the man behind hit movie characters Ali G, Borat and Bruno, will play flamboyant singer Freddie Mercury in a film about Queen, the band's guitarist Brian May has revealed. 0 Comments To This Article Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006) - IMDb IMDb There was an error trying to load your rating for this title. Some parts of this page won't work property. Please reload or try later. X Beta I'm Watching This! Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Error Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan ( 2006 ) R | Watch Now From $2.99 (SD) on Amazon Video Kazakh TV talking head Borat is dispatched to the United States to report on the greatest country in the world. With a documentary crew in tow, Borat becomes more interested in locating and marrying Pamela Anderson .

Director: a list of 36 titles created 07 Oct 2012 a list of 48 titles created 11 May 2014 a list of 30 titles created 11 Jan 2015 a list of 30 titles created 04 Feb 2015 a list of 30 titles created 7 months ago Title: Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan (2006) 7.3/10 Want to share IMDb's rating on your own site? Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 20 wins & 31 nominations. See more awards » Videos The heroic story of a dictator who risked his life to ensure that democracy would never come to the country he so lovingly oppressed. Director: Larry Charles Flamboyant and gay Austrian Brüno looks for new fame in America. Director: Larry Charles Ali G unwittingly becomes a pawn in the evil Chancellor's plot to overthrow the Prime Minister of Great Britain. However, instead of bringing the Prime Minister down, Ali is embraced by the...

See full summary » Director: Mark Mylod The cross-country adventures of two good-hearted but incredibly stupid friends. Directors: Peter Farrelly, Bobby Farrelly Stars: Jim Carrey, Jeff Daniels, Lauren Holly Three buddies wake up from a bachelor party in Las Vegas, with no memory of the previous night and the bachelor missing. They make their way around the city in order to find their friend before his wedding. Director: Todd Phillips After Homer accidentally pollutes the town's water supply, Springfield is encased in a gigantic dome by the EPA and the Simpson family are declared fugitives. Director: David Silverman Goaded by his buddies, a nerdy guy who's never "done the deed" only finds the pressure mounting when he meets a single mother. Director: Judd Apatow A new assignment forces a top spy to team up with his football hooligan brother. Director: Louis Leterrier An ignorant, wannabe-Jamaican British b-boy; an anti-Semitic, misogynistic but friendly Kazakhstani television reporter; and a homosexual Austrian fashonista--all played by Sacha Baron ...

See full summary » Stars: Sacha Baron Cohen, Buzz Aldrin, Arthur Danto Ron Burgundy is San Diego's top-rated newsman in the male-dominated broadcasting of the 1970s, but that's all about to change for Ron and his cronies when an ambitious woman is hired as a new anchor. Director: Adam McKay A 1960s hipster secret agent is brought out of cryofreeze to oppose his greatest enemy in the 1990s, where his social attitudes are glaringly out of place. Director: Jay Roach Upon learning that his father has been kidnapped, Austin Powers must travel to 1975 and defeat the aptly named villain Goldmember - who is working with Dr. Evil. Director: Jay Roach Edit Storyline Borat Sagdiyev is a TV reporter of a popular show in Kazakhstan as Kazakhstan's sixth most famous man and a leading journalist. He is sent from his home to America by his government to make a documentary about American society and culture. Borat takes a course in New York City to understand American humor. While watching Baywatch on TV, Borat discovers how beautiful their women are in the form of C. J.

Parker, who was played by actress Pamela Anderson who hails from Malibu, California. He decides to go on a cross-country road trip to California in a quest to make her his wife and take her back to his country. On his journey Borat and his producer encounter a country full of strange and wonderful Americans, real people in real chaotic situations with hysterical consequences. Written by Anthony Pereyra {hypersonic91@yahoo.com} Come to Kazakhstan, It's Nice! Genres: Motion Picture Rating ( MPAA ) Rated R for pervasive strong crude and sexual content including graphic nudity, and language | See all certifications » Parents Guide: 3 November 2006 (USA) See more » Also Known As: £6,242,344 (UK) (3 November 2006) Gross: Did You Know? Trivia Borat is based on a Russian doctor Sacha Baron Cohen once met. He said the doctor was completely hilarious, but it was unintentional. See more » Goofs Borat visits a TV station in Jackson, Mississippi. However, the map still has him located somewhere in Virginia. See more » Quotes Borat : Jak sie masz? My name-a Borat. I like you.

I like sex. Is nice! ["How are you?" in Polish] See more » Crazy Credits Opening credits, closing credits, and identifier subtitles in the story are in the Cyrillic alphabet. The subtitles are obliterated by superimposed English translations. In the end credits, the Cyrillic words are in the background, with the English translations in front. See more » Connections Written and Performed by Goran Bregovic Courtesy of Mercury Records France, a Division of Universal Music S.A. Under license from Universal Music Enterprises A Hilarious (and Much Needed) Assault on Decency 13 November 2006 | by evanston_dad (United States) – See all my reviews Sacha Baron Cohen comes to America in the guise of Borat Sagdiyev and wreaks his own brand of Kazakhi havoc in this very very funny film. In our age of uber-political correctness, "Borat" comes sweeping through like a brisk and refreshing wind, completely bounding over every cultural taboo we've erected around ourselves. Thus, no one is safe: Borat takes on Jews, blacks, gays, feminists, middle-Americans, religious fanatics, frat boys.

The only weapon against the bumbling Borat is a sense of humour, which this movie shows most Americans painfully lack. Indeed, if there is any message to be had from "Borat" (and I'm not sure there is much of one, beyond its fascinating cultural experiments), it's that everyone needs to lighten up and not take themselves so seriously. The image of Americans projected in this film varies from the heartwarming to the downright frightening. New Yorkers threaten Borat with physical violence when he approaches them on a subway. Feminists walk out on him when they find his views on women too much to tolerate. Folks out in the heartland commiserate with him over his hatred of gays and Jews; a gun shop owner even helps him pick out the best weapon for shooting Jewish people. A sweet Jewish couple give him a place to sleep, and bring him a homey meal (that is, before they turn into invading cockroaches). A group of manic Pentecosts help him find Jesus. An RV full of frat boys make complete asses of themselves by espousing their hopelessly ill-informed views on minorities in our country and the need to revert to slavery.

The majority of people treat Borat in the condescending way of those who want to think of themselves as being culturally aware without really knowing anything at all about other cultures. These people become rude the second Borat offends their sense of propriety. On the other hand, the disenfranchised of America greet Borat with open arms, and we see a group of gays and a group of blacks interacting with him as if no cultural boundaries existed at all. The film's sweetest (and most unexpectedly so) moments come from Borat's befriending of a black prostitute. Of course, this is a carefully crafted work of fiction, and Cohen only lets his audience see what he wants them to see. I would probably react much the same as many of the people in this film if this crazy-looking and sounding man appeared out of nowhere and began to antagonize me. But the movie does make Americans look like a bunch of awfully self-important, uptight stiffs, and I've been to enough places in this country and met enough people to realize that the way events play out in this film (even if they are manipulated or staged) probably come very close to the real thing.

Thank God for movies like "Borat." If nothing else, they remind us that our cultural boundaries only matter as much as we let them, and that all of the fears that govern political correctness are mostly ungrounded. After all, virtually every person in this film was offended at one point or another, and as far as I can tell, all of them lived to tell about it. Grade: A 355 of 480 people found this review helpful. Was this review helpful to you? Yes

Question: What is the name of the British comedian behind the characters Bruno and Borat?
Answer: Sasha Baron Cohen